On Sunday, Wyndham Clark was able to outlast Rory McElroy to win the U.S. Open by one shot, with a score of 10-under par. I know most people don’t recognize Clark's name, but this wasn’t a huge surprise because he was able to win the Wells Fargo Championship last month at Quail Hollow Club, which is a very difficult golf course.
Los Angeles Country Club is a very interesting golf course, but I was surprised how easily it was set up for the U.S. Open. The set up was like a typical PGA tournament when they don’t care how low the scores go. Most of the fairways were very wide, which lets the players hit their drivers all over the place.
McEIroy and Clark separated themselves early from the rest of the field in the final round. I thought there was going to be a two-hole playoff to determine the champion at the end. I don’t know why the media are crushing McElroy for how he finished. I thought he played a good U.S. Open all around and would’ve won the championship in a lot of tournaments, but Wyndham Clark did not seem to miss a shot over the last two rounds of the tournament. He definitely was a worthy winner.
The NBA Draft is taking place this week. This is the most hyped draft in 20 years since LeBron James was selected, all because of one player, Victor Wembanyama from France. He is a 7-foot-4 center with strong athletic skills who is only 19 years old. The videos that everyone has seen are very impressive. The biggest worry is injury to his legs because of how tall and thin he is.
Yao Ming from China was also a media darling when he came into the NBA. A series of injuries severely affected Yao's career with the Houston Rockets. The good thing for Victor is he’s going to be drafted by the San Antonio Spurs who are used to drafting great centers like Tim Duncan and David Robinson. One other good thing for Victor is that very few U.S. fans other than NBA scouts have seen him play. Hopefully there will be less pressure on him than on LeBron James in 2003 because he hasn’t had most of his high school games on TV like LeBron did.
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A 2002 Cape grad and 2007 UD grad, Lewes resident Sumner Spence is one of the Cape area's biggest sports fans. Although he’s used a wheelchair his entire life, he has lived vicariously through his sports-playing father, brother, and friends, who gave him his love of sports. He hopes to provide new and interesting perspectives on the sports stories and issues of the day. Email Sumner at sumspence@gmail.com.
